Find Lawyers.
|
|
Brian Donnelly is an AV Preeminent Rated Attorney and Managing Member of the firm. He is listed in the Bar Register of Preeminent Attorneys, a distinction claimed by fewer than 5% of law firms in the country. From 2009 to the present he has been selected for inclusion in SuperLawyers as a Rising Star. In 2010 he was included in the 2010 Legal Elite List for Smart CEO Magazine, Philadelphia. He focuses his practice on business and estate planning and litigation. Mr. Donnelly has drafted hundreds of estate plans over his career ranging from simple wills to complex estate plans involving trusts and multiple properties and closely held businesses. He has engaged in numerous probate matters including several multi-million dollar estates. In business and corporate matters for the firm, he serves as outside general counsel for several larger closely held businesses with hundreds of employees and gross revenues in the tens of millions of dollars. In commercial litigation matters he has represented numerous closely held businesses and publicly traded companies, including some of the largest companies in America.
Mr. Donnelly is a life-long South Jersey resident. He graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park in 1999 and Rutgers School of Law, Camden in 2002. While at Rutgers he was a participant in the James R. Hunter Advanced Moot Court Competition, and was a research assistant to Distinguished Professor of Law, N.E.H. Hull. He holds a Master of Laws in Taxation from Temple University's Beasley School of Law.
After receiving his Juris Doctor from Rutgers, Mr. Donnelly was selected for a one-year clerkship by the Honorable James E. Rafferty, Presiding Judge General Equity for Gloucester, Salem and Cumberland Counties. In most vicinages only one judge is assigned to the General Equity Part and it is considered a prestigious assignment, as General Equity Judges handle non-jury cases such as those involving trade secrets, labor matters, foreclosures, and other disputes in which court relief, often in the form of restraining orders, is sought on an emergency basis. Some of the cases that Mr. Donnelly reviewed in his capacity as a General Equity clerk included:
In addition to his duties as an equity clerk, Mr. Donnelly also assisted the Judge with all probate matters before the Court, including:
Litigation over contested wills;
Incapacity hearings (to declare a person unable to manage his/her own affairs);
Appointment of guardians in medical emergency circumstances; and Authorization and supervision of life support procedures.
Following his clerkship Mr. Donnelly worked for three years as a Litigation Associate for a firm in Moorestown, NJ specializing in bankruptcy and creditors rights. Mr. Donnelly represented the interests of secured and unsecured creditors by protecting assets in Chapter 11, 7 and 13 bankruptcies. His responsibilities included review and objections to plans and disclosure statements, motions for relief from automatic stay of the bankruptcy code, and overall protection of his client's assets within the bankruptcy court from inception to conclusion of a debtor's case. He frequently argued and appeared before multiple federal judges two to three times per week. Mr. Donnelly was also responsible for litigating the firm's entire state court commercial collections litigation and replevin (repossession) practice.
Prior to forming the firm, Mr. Donnelly worked as an Associate for a boutique firm in Princeton, New Jersey focused on counseling investment firms specializing in alternative investments including hedge funds, private equities, physical commodities, futures and other forms of derivative investments. While with the firm, Mr. Donnelly reviewed, drafted, and negotiated numerous corporate and commercial documents including resolutions, operating and partnership agreements, purchase agreements, commercial leases, employee agreements, benefit plans, and compliance manuals. He also assisted clients with initial and ongoing regulatory requirements with the SEC, NASD, CFTC, National Futures Association (the NFA), and state blue sky regulations including completion of regulatory forms 10K, 10-Q, 8-K, 13F, 13G, ADV, Form 40 and Form D.
Mr. Donnelly is a fifteen-year veteran of the armed forces. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps for eight years as a non-commissioned officer before being commissioned as a Judge Advocate General in the U.S. Army Reserves. He has served in that capacity for eight years and currently holds the rank of Captain. In December of 2008 he was mobilized by the Army to serve a one-year tour working as part of the staff of the Judge Advocate General of the U.S. Army, International and Operations Law Division where he prosecuted terrorists under Iraqi law.
| Chicago Law Lawyer |
